AFGHANISTAN

07.05.1310:55 AM ET

Female Police Officer Killed

Top cop shot on her way to work in Helmand Province.

Despite death threats from her own brother, Islam Bibi donned her police uniform and dutifully went to work as the top female police officer in southern Afghanistan’s Helmand province. That came to a tragic end on July 4, as the 37-year-old mother of three was gunned down on her way to her job. According to officials, Bibi and her son-in-law were shot while on his motorbike, and the suspects have not been identified. Women make up less than 2 percent of Helmand’s police force, due to intimidation from the Taliban and potential shaming from family members, The Guardian reports. According to Human Rights Watch, female officers are also subject to harassment, particularly while using male toilet facilities in the police stations, since women usually do not have toilets of their own.